Saudi blogger Raif Badawi sentenced to 10 years in jail

A court in Saudi Arabia has reportedly sentenced blogger Raif Badawi to 10 years in jail for insulting Islam and setting up a liberal web forum.

According to the BBC, Badawi has also been sentenced to 1,000 lashes and ordered to pay a fine of 1 million riyals (USD 266,000; ÂGBP133,000).

Deeming the verdict outrageous, Amnesty International urged the authorities to quash the verdict.

The AI has described him as a "prisoner of conscience" and has called for his release, saying that Badawi is the latest victim to fall prey to the ruthless campaign to silence peaceful activists in Saudi Arabia.

Badawi, the co-founder of a website called the Liberal Saudi Network, who had previously called for 7 May to be a "day for Saudi liberals," was arrested in 2012, the report added.